This invention relates in general to the lubrication of rails and more particularly to a mobile lubricating device which serves to apply grease to the rails of railroad track.
It has long been known that the application of lubricant to railroad tracks can significantly reduce the wear on both the railcar wheels and on the rails. Lubrication also can result in significant fuel savings for the locomotives. The friction is greatest on curves, and lubrication is thus most effective when applied to curved areas of the track. In the past, the conventional practice has been to use stationary wayside lubricating devices for the application of lubricant. The wayside lubricator pumps grease onto the flange of the rail at a selected location and relies on the wheels of the train to spread the grease along the entire curved area of the track. As can easily be appreciated, a large part of the grease (typically 40%) is essentially wasted because it is thrown off of the rail by the wheels. Consequently, the lubricant is applied in an uneconomical manner by the way side lubricators. In addition, each curve that requires lubrication must be equipped with a separate lubricating device, and a large number of lubricators are thus required along a given stretch of track.
Due in large part to these shortcomings associated with wayside lubricators, various types of mobile lubricating units have been proposed in the past. One approach that has been proposed is to provide a special vehicle which is used to apply the lubricant. This is a high cost system because it requires a dedicated vehicle which must be specially constructed and which is capable only of lubricating rails. Adding to the cost is the need for at least one worker to operate the vehicle and the lubricating equipment.
Another device that has been proposed is a trailer mounted lubricator that is towed behind a conventional track maintenance vehicle. The need for a specially constructed trailer on which to carry the lubricating device results in a high cost for this device also. Moreover, the trailer must be attached to and detached from the towing vehicle from time to time, and it must be stored when not in use.
Another type of lubricator that has been proposed is mounted to the rail gear that is carried on a track maintenance vehicle. This has the advantage of allowing the device to apply lubricant during routine track inspections, thus avoiding the need to make additional trips for the purpose of lubricating the track. However, the only known device of this type includes applicator nozzles that are carried low to the ground at a fixed position and cannot be adjusted to get them out of the way when not in use. As a consequence, the nozzles are highly susceptible to damage caused by obstacles that may be encountered, particularly if the maintenance truck should derail. The grease is highly viscous in cold weather and flows so poorly that cold weather lubrication is either not possible at all or is at best carried out slowly and with less effectiveness than is achieved in warmer weather.